The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has adopted the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) for all commercial and public buildings and major retrofits. Minimal code compliance by commercial buildings in Andhra Pradesh (40 percent complying with the ECBC, 5 percent exceeding the code) translates into 86 terawatt hours (TWh) of cumulative energy saved by 2030, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
According to a new report, “Building Efficient Cities: Strengthening the India Real Estate Market Through Codes and Incentives,” by the NRDC and the Administrative Staff College of India and supported in part by Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, India’s real estate market is experiencing tremendous growth. In the first six months of 2013, more than 20 million square feet of prime office space was constructed in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, and Bangalore, a 16 percent increase on an annual basis.
The report finds that if states across India adopted the ECBC and developers participated in strong programs for rating commercial buildings, an estimated 3,453 TWh of cumulative electricity could be saved by 2030.
Under the ECBC, the load requirement for buildings to comply is 100 kW or 120 kilovolt-amps (kVa), which means that both commercial and high-rise residential buildings (about five stories or higher) come under the code’s purview. The ECBC is voluntary at the national level, and the Ministry of Urban Development and state governments are responsible for its implementation and enforcement.